


Ending The Past

by Bthewolfe, thr08



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Father-Daughter Relationship, Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin) Swears, Minor Armin Arlert/Annie Leonhart, Minor Character Death, Minor Hange Zoë/Erwin Smith, Minor Krista Lenz | Historia Reiss/Ymir, Minor Marco Bott/Jean Kirstein, Minor Mikasa Ackerman/Eren Yeager, Minor Reiner Braun/Bertolt Hoover, Minor Sasha Blouse/Connie Springer, Other, ooc levi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-19
Updated: 2016-08-13
Packaged: 2018-07-15 22:37:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 11,028
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7241581
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bthewolfe/pseuds/Bthewolfe, https://archiveofourown.org/users/thr08/pseuds/thr08
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Harper Rose was only seven years old when she witnessed her parents’ deaths. Now, she is fifteen and a trainee in the cadet corps. She is a slacker and a recluse, until Captain Levi takes notice of her. From the first glance he realizes that she is different, and somehow he felt the need to help her. He helps her realize her potential, and she joins the Special Operations unit of the Survey Corps, but his job isn’t over after that. Harper has begun to look up to him as a sort of father figure, and he has become completely entwined in the life of this young teenage girl. But can he manage to fill the parent-shaped holes the titans have left in her heart?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Trouble

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is thr08. This is just a story I thought of and decided it would be fun to write. I thought it would be a bit unique to write about Levi as a father instead of some romantic partner. Big thanks to Bthewolfe for actually agreeing to help me write about my crazy daydream and big thanks to anyone who reads it!!

This fight between humanity and titans was ending very soon. Humanity had managed to reclaim much of the land and eliminate most of the titans. Although there were still a few titans out there, the Survey Corps was more successful now than in the past, and casualties were decreasing every year.  
Harper was only 7 when she had her family violently ripped away from her. They, along with some other villagers, were asked by the king to go to a new village and live there. They would be payed so that they could build houses, set up shops, or start farms. There were different types of people. Young, old, farmers, business owners, and even teachers. Harper’s father was a doctor, while her mother was a stay-at-home wife/mom. Her dad was sent so that the village would have a doctor, and he hoped to set up a small hospital in the future. 

 

It was only noon. The sun was high in the sky and Harper, personally, felt like it was way too hot to be outside. Her family and the other villagers were traveling to what was soon to be their new home.   
“Moom! It’s soo hot!” cried Harper.  
“I know, but we’re almost to our new home,” replied her mother.  
Harper just stuck out her tongue. She didn’t want to move, she wanted to stay with her friends back at her old school. Harper knew she wouldn’t like this new village.

As Harper laid on the wagon bed, she began to feel everything shaking.   
What’s happening? she thought as she sat up.   
By the time she had gotten up and was starting to get off the wagon, it had stopped moving. Getting out she began saying, “Mom why’d we sto….”  
Out in the distance was a titan.

-8 years later-

After having lost her parents in the titan attack, Harper returned to her old village and was put in an orphanage. The orphanage felt like a living hell. The caretaker had only taken the job only because she would be payed slightly more than her old job. In no way or form did she actually give a rat’s ass what happened to the children. The children there were just as bad, always ignoring her and when they didn’t ignore her they always had some kind of insult for her. She spent 8 years there, and joined the military when she turned 15. Once there, she was placed in a house with three other trainees: Amelia, Lucy, and Violet.

She had a hard time trying to make friends there. She didn’t really fit in, and she felt like none of the other trainees really understood her. Since the survey corps had become more successful, there were less and less people affected by the titans; therefore not many of her peers knew what it was like to lose loved ones to the depravity of the titans. Most people avoided her, and those who didn’t treated her like a charity case. Harper felt incredibly lonely here, and it didn’t help that everyone else seemed to have already found a clique. Her roommates were nice enough, but they definitely didn’t go out of their way to befriend her. Sometimes she got the feeling that Lucy wanted to talk to her, but she was either too shy, or too awkward to speak up. Violet and Amelia basically avoided her at all costs, whenever they had to talk to her they were polite, but they never went beyond small talk and minor formalities. 

Harper rolled out of her bed in the barracks, and got dressed as quickly as possible. She had woken up a few minutes later than usual and was trying to hurry up so that she wasn’t tardy. Being late to training was one of the worst possible things, the instructors had begun to get creative with their punishments. One boy was late on the second day and they made him hang off a high tree branch for an hour. It seems a little bit unorthodox, but the instructors basically had free reign to do whatever they wanted now that the titan threat was down. She hastily threw on her gear and sprinted outside. Her spot was between Lucy and some random kid she didn’t know and it was really only about 20 feet away, but it seemed like miles to her. She turned a corner, and skidded to a halt, but not before Commander Keith rang the bell that signaled the start of the training session. Commander Keith began had began walking around the formation of the cadets. Finally, he got to Harper and stopped.  
“You’re,” he began as he inched closer to her face until they were so close that Harper could smell what he had for breakfast, coffee. “Late,” he finished.  
She gulped before she replied, “Sorry sir, it won’t happen again,”  
“Hmm, yeah right!” he scoffed, looking at her like she was just dirt on the bottom of his shoe,”Of course you’ll do it again. And again, and again, and again, unless you learn your lesson.”  
At that, Harper could almost feel her soul departing from her body. Oh no… I’m sure he’ll think up something extra cruel for me, he has always disliked me. I couldn’t hang from a tree for an hour! I would die! She began to panic, and was too lost in thought to realize that the instructor had spoken to her again.  
“Well?!?” he demanded, “What do you have to say for yourself? Or are you too ignorant to respond?”  
“Figures,” he sneered, “I’ll repeat it once again for you.” He slowly leaned in so that his mouth was right next to Harper’s ear.  
“GET RUNNING CADET AND DON’T EVEN THINK ABOUT EATING TONIGHT!”


	2. First Encounter

Harper didn’t know how long she had been running but she was starving and her legs had started to feel sore a long time ago. Finally, as the sun was setting, she tripped like she had multiple times but this time she just let her herself collapse on the ground. Fatigue had overcome her body and she felt as if she was ready to die. If I don’t end up dying in the hands of a titan, I'll surely die here. She thought as she felt her eyes closing.  
“Harper, oh my goodness!!” she heard someone cry before she completely closed her eyes. But just before she could be swallowed by the darkness, she smelled it. The delicious smell of freshly baked bread, a boiled potato, and some cookies. Sitting up straight, she turned to see Lucy. still in her uniform and standing there with a tray of food.  
“I thought you might be hungry, especially after running all this time,” was the only thing Lucy said before Harper starting bawling her eyes out. Lucy was taken aback when the girl suddenly starting crying but either way she gently sat next to her and handed her the tray.   
“Hey,” Lucy gently said, “Don’t cry.”  
I’m just so happy Harper thought but couldn’t bring herself to say.  
After Harper practically devoured all the food, Lucy began to stand up to return the dishware she had used.  
“Here, I’ll take the dishes. People might find it suspicious if you take them back. I’ll see you back at the barracks.” said Lucy, before turning around and throwing Harper a smile. Though before Lucy could began walking, she felt a tug on her sleeve.  
“Thanks,” Harper whispered, shyly. In return, Lucy just flashed her a smile.  
Aww! So cute!! She’s almost like a small lost puppy. Thought Lucy.

After Lucy left, Harper began to walk to her barracks to clean herself and gets some rest. As she rounded the corner to one of the barracks, she crashed into what felt like a giant brick wall and fell right on her butt. I could have sworn that wasn’t there before she thought as she rubbed her bottom. Opening her eyes, she looked up, only to have see a pair of intimidating grey eyes staring at her. Captain Levi she thought, as she continued to stare. Almost like she had appeared from out of nowhere, Hanji jumped out from behind Levi and pointed at Harper.  
“Ahh! I know you! You’re the girl Commander Keith was yelling at a few hours earlier,” she yelled out loud. Harper blushed as she looked down, quietly saying a quick “yeah” before finally standing up and saluting her superiors. She could still feel Levi staring, well more like glaring, at her, but she just kept staring at her shoes.  
“You know, I’m surprised you managed to run that long considering that Commander Keith had told me you lacked in physical strength,” Hanji said, smiling.   
“You seemed okay to me though,” Hanji continued, “Hmm.. maybe he was lying.”  
“Shitty glasses, don’t you have to take a few tests on titan boy,” said Levi, still glaring at Harper.   
“Oooh!! YES,” screamed Hanji, before taking off in a different direction while yelling, “Eren, where are you!!”

“I’m sorry I crashed into you, Sir” Harper whispered.  
“Tch” was all Levi said before he walked away. Harper let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding.


	3. Repeat of Yesterday?

The very next morning Harper made sure to wake up extra early so she wouldn’t be late again. She quickly showered and put on her uniform before making her way down to the dining room to eat breakfast.  
Once she had her food, she sat down at one of the empty tables in the corner and began eating. She began to think about yesterday, about how Lucy had been so nice to her. It was almost like she was an angel sent from heaven. Snapping out of her thoughts, she turned just in time to see Lucy placing her tray right next to hers.  
“Hey. I see you're up early,” she said. Harper only nodded in response.   
“That's good. We wouldn't want a repeat of yesterday,” said Lucy as she began to eat. Definitely thought Harper. Harper began to recall all of yesterday, especially the part where Hanji basically told you that Commander Keith thought you were a weakling.   
“You know, it's okay that you aren't as strong as the others. Strength isn't everything. You may lack physical strength but you make up for in your genius thinking,” said Lucy. Harper stared at her shocked for a second. How did she know what I was thinking? She thought. But finally, smiling, Harper said, “thanks.” Lucy only smiled in return. 

After breakfast, both girls began to get ready to train. Okay! I'm going to give it my all and get better. Harper thought. Unfortunately fate had other plans for her. Harper was too far behind the rest trainees that she didn't know what was happening most of the time but she tried her hardest. But even when you try your hardest things don't always seem to go the way you want them to. This continued for weeks. Harper tried all she could and when she finally couldn't, Lucy came and tried to help her. Tried.  
Finally, after it seemed that training when she was required to wasn't working, Harper decided to train harder and longer. After everyone else had dinner and was resting in their barracks, Harper was outside training. She first began increasing her leg strength with running and various other leg exercises then she would increase her arm strength with various arm exercises. Even after all those exercises, she felt she had to more. All these nights of training were leaving her sleep deprived. One night she was out training with the 3DMG when she heard, “Oi! Brat, what are you doing out so late at night?”   
Spinning around she came face to face with Levi.   
“Captain,” she began, nervously, “just...training a bit.”   
“Cadet, it's 3 in the morning and your technique sucks. You're just wasting time,” he said, as he took notice of the bags under her eyes.   
“Huh? I don't think I understand, sir,” she said.   
“Can't you see that the cuts you're making aren't good enough to kill a Titan? At this rate, I wouldn't be surprised if you became a Titan snack,” he said.   
I guess there's no hope for me she thought as she felt tears gathering in the corner of her eyes. Harper tried hard not to cry in front of Levi but it was almost as if her tears had a mind of their own.   
Levi was very taken aback when he looked down at the girl, only to find her silently crying. He was used to cadet beings scared of him or trying to better themselves whenever he insulted them but he certainly didn't expect her or intend to make her cry. What the hell? This always works on that damn titan boy he thought. He did admit that seeing her cry did make him feel a little guilty, especially since the girl looked so small and fragile. Sighing he said, “Here, give me the sword and I'll show you how to hold it.” After wiping her tears, she nodded and handed him the sword.   
“Okay brat, watch closely because I'm only showing you once,” he told her with a more gentle tone. After he finished demonstrating how to correctly hold the sword, he handed back to her. “Now you try it.”


	4. I Can Get Better

After several attempts of her trying again, the results weren't any different. She still couldn't cut deep enough to kill a Titan. Finally after the tenth attempt Levi yelled, “okay, let's stop.”   
“ No! Just one more time. I promise this time I'll get it!! I'm serious,” Harper yelled in despair.   
“No, come here,” Levi said.   
Beginning to cry, Harper responded, “ No, sir, I promise I can do this just let me try one more time.” But nevertheless, Harper walked over to Levi.   
“Here, hold them like this,” Levi said, rearranging the way her hands were holding the sword. Turning Harper around, Levi gave her a gentle push on to the course. 

Holding the sword firmly in her hand, Harper once again began maneuvering her way through the course but this time she felt something was different. The swords felt like they belonged in her hand. She continued until she finally made her way back to Levi. He was standing with his usual scowl and bored stance, but this time she thought maybe she saw something different in his eyes. Maybe she was imagining it, but whatever it was, it was gone as soon as it had came.   
“Nice job, brat,” he said as nicely as he could manage. Oh shit.. I’m the only one that I’ve ever known of that holds blades like that. That’s kind of weird… Levi thought, eyeing Harper suspiciously.  
Her eyes lit up at what seemed to be a compliment and a huge grin spread across her face, “Really?”   
“Yeah, yeah. Now you need to get some sleep, you won’t ever be able to kill titans if you die of sleep deprivation first,” Levi mumbled, trying not to smile. That was so unlike him, but he felt very happy whenever he saw her huge childlike grin. He knew that he had at least done something right.’  
“Yes, sir,” she said dejectedly. She had really wanted to work more on her technique now that she was finally able to hold the blades right, but she knew that Levi was right.   
Levi turned to walk off, but stopped when Harper suddenly spoke up, “Thank you, Captain Levi. I never thought I would be able to get that down, but you really helped me.”   
He turned around to see her looking shyly at the ground, “Tch, it wasn’t that big of a deal. But, if you want to catch up then there is a lot that you’ll need to work on. I’m assuming I will be able to find you practicing again tomorrow night?”   
“Oh, umm. Definitely!” she said, looking up with a smile still on her face.   
“Okay, good,” he said walking off again. He wasn’t sure what got into him, but he wanted to help her. Maybe he saw something of himself in her; she was so young and naive, and she seemed to act childish, but he could tell that there was something a bit deeper. He knew that there was something wrong… something that not everyone saw, and maybe he only did because he had experienced it himself. Loneliness and loss. Those were two things that he knew well, and maybe that was the reason that he decided to continue helping her.   
Harper stared after him for a few moments before trudging off towards the barracks. She couldn’t believe what had just happened, Captain Levi had helped her and offered to continue doing so. She quietly opened the door and tiptoed to her bunk, climbing up as quietly as possible so that she wouldn’t wake up her roommates. Her vision became blurred as she dozed off into a deep, and much need sleep, still replaying the night’s events in her mind.

And that’s how it continued. Almost every night, she and Levi would train. Soon, many people began noticing how much she improved, even Erwin and Hanji.   
“It’s crazy. In just a few weeks she began showing signs that her technique had improved and even her physical strength is increasing,” said Commander Keith one night while he was talking to Erwin, Hanji, and Levi.  
“Wooaah!! Maybe she has magical powers or she’s a titan like Eren,” exclaimed Hanji, frantically waving her hands.  
“I doubt that Hanji. Maybe she just didn’t really try at first and seeing as after her punishment she was almost dead, she began to try so she wouldn’t get punished,” replied Erwin. Levi almost smirked, seeing that they couldn’t figure out the real reason.  
“But nevertheless, she has potential to join your squad, Levi. That is if she decides to join the Survey Corps,” said Erwin.

During all the training, Lucy and Harper began becoming great friends. Harper slowly began coming out of her shell. She talked more, smiled more, and even began to act a bit like herself around Lucy but not around anyone else. Harper looked up to Lucy almost like the mother/older sister Harper never had. And Lucy treated Harper as the little sister she never had. One day both girls were sitting in the dining room, eating lunch, when Lucy took notice of the bags under Harper’s eyes.  
“You know, I’ve been meaning to ask you this. Have you been sleeping well? Does this have anything to do with your improving technique,” she asked.   
“I’m fine. But I’m going to let you in on a little secret that you have to promise that you will absolutely positively not tell anyone, okay?” said Harper, whispering in her ear before she proceeded to stick out her pinky. Smiling, Lucy entwined their pinkies before saying, “I promise.”  
“Captain Levi from the Survey Corps has been secretly helping me,” said Harper, smiling wide. Lucy was worried for a second. But everyone says he’s so mean, Why would he help Harper? She thought. But noticing the great, big smile on Harper’s face, she dismissed her worries. If he was truly mean to her, she would have been crying by now. She thought.   
“Harper, I don’t want you to train too hard, and forget about sleeping and resting, okay? You may start having the best technique but none of that is going to work against a titan if you fall asleep while you battle it,” said Lucy, turning on her motherly nature.   
“Aye aye Captain Lucy,” said Harper, making Lucy smile.

 

Finally it was the day of their graduation. Everybody either knew where they wanted to go or they didn't. But only the top ten were allowed to go into the Military Police. Harper surprised everyone when it was announced that she had graduated at the top of her class while Lucy graduated in 12th place. Finally at the end of it, it was time for the commanders of each regiment to come up and deliver a speech as to why they should join said regiment. Of course, Commander Erwin scares almost all the cadets away when he delivers his speech, even if there is a less likely chance you'll die in battle with a Titan. So finally when Erwin finishes his speech by telling the cadets that if they do not wish to join the Survey Corps they should leave now, almost all the cadets leave except for Harper, Lucy, and a few other cadets.   
“Look Shorty, it's that girl,” Hanji said, pointing at Harper. “I hear she's gotten better. Better than even Mikasa and now that she's joining the Survey Corps, Erwin is probably going to put her in your squad,” she continued. Levi thought about it for a moment. I guess having her on my squad wouldn't be that bad he thought. He was surprised to learn that she didn't annoy him as much as the other cadets. She was quiet, naive, and obeyed his every order.  
Hanji, on the other hand, was surprised that Levi didn’t get mad at her for calling him shorty. 

Harper was bouncing with excitement.   
“Imagine Lucy!! We’ll get to go outside the walls and…and fight Titans to help humanity!!!”   
“Yeah, that's great. But I'd rather study the Titans. Their genetics are quite weird,” said Lucy.


	5. Am I Good Enough?

The very next day Harper woke up bright and early.   
“We're in the Survey Corps,” she yelled, shaking Lucy awake.   
“I know,” muttered Lucy from under her blanket.   
“Come on!!! Get ready,” Harper whined.   
“Yeah… Yeah. I'm up,” said Lucy as she struggled to climb out of bed. Her bed was just so welcoming. They were still in their barracks but today they would move into the barracks where all the other Survey Corps members resided.   
After eating breakfast, Lucy and Harper returned to their barracks to clean for the next set of trainees that would come in. And finally when they cleaned everything, they packed their few belongings and began to head to the Survey Corps’ barracks.  
Once they arrived at their assigned barracks, they, again, began to clean, seeing as it was dusty and looked like it hadn’t been used in forever. As they cleaned they heard someone clear their throat.   
“Commander Erwin would like to talk to you Harper, “ said Violet. Both girls were honestly surprised to see Violet here, at the Survey Corps. They both thought she would have joined the Military Police or the Garrison, considering Violet graduated in the top ten.  
“Ah, okay,” replied Harper. Lucy gave her a small ‘good luck’ as she walked to Commander Erwin’s office.

*knock knock* “Commander Erwin.. Sir… it’s me, Harper. Violet told me you wanted to see me,” she said from behind the door.  
Opening the door, Erwin said, “Ahh.. yes. Come in, have a seat.”  
Walking in, she looked around and saw Hanji and Levi.  
“It’s alright. Have a seat,” said Erwin, noticing Harper’s distress at seeing the two commanders.  
Harper sat down but immediately avoided eye contact with the man in front of her.   
“Tell me Harper, where do you see yourself in the future in the Survey Corps,” Erwin asked.  
Harper looked confused for a second but finally replied, “Fighting titans.. Sir.”   
Erwin laughed. Hanji just smiled. Levi almost smirked.   
“What I’m trying to say Harper is that I’d think it would be best for you and humanity if you joined the Special Operations Squad, otherwise known as Levi’s squad,” Erwin said, after laughing. Harper was shocked. Am I really good enough? she thought.  
“Yeah! You’d go good in shorty’s squad, seeing as you’re pretty good. Maybe even better than most of the cadets we have here,” said Hanji, almost scaring Harper. She had forgotten that Levi and Hanji were still in the room.   
“What about you Levi? What do you think,” asked Erwin, as they stared at him in anticipation.   
“I guess,” he said. That convinced Harper.  
“Alright, I’ll join,” she exclaimed. Happily, she skipped out of the room, but not before saluting her superiors.  
As soon as Harper closed the door both Erwin and Hanji turned to face Levi.  
“So what’s the big deal, shorty,” asked Hanji.   
“Shut it, shitty glasses. There is no big deal,” he replied.   
“Nonsense Levi, you may obey my orders but never without a complaint,” said Erwin.  
Sighing, Levi stood up and walked towards the door and stopped.   
“There’s nothing wrong. I just think she has the potential to join my squad,” he said.  
“Uh-huh,” said Erwin, unconvinced.


	6. Welcome To The Team

After having accepted to being in the Special Operations Squad, Harper went to tell Lucy the good news.That night both girls celebrated the good news.   
The very next morning Harper knocked on Levi’s door.   
“Name and business,” said Levi.   
“Captain, it’s Harper, and you told me to come at 6 yesterday,” she said.  
Opening the door, Levi said, “Follow me.” before walking out and down the hall. For a man with short legs, captain is kinda hard to keep up with she thought. Finally he stopped at a door and opened it. He stepped in and began walking towards the back to make himself some tea but Harper just stood at the doorway looking at all the new people.  
Levi called out to Harper, “Brat, come here.”   
“Yes, captain,” she said. She stood next to Levi, facing his squad.   
“Alright. Listen up guys, this is Harper and she will be a part of this team from now on, understood?”   
“Yes, Heichou”  
For what felt like the longest time they all just stood there, staring at each other.   
Harper saw a man with long tied up blonde hair, a short woman with light-ginger hair, a man with pointy hair, and finally a man who looked like a bad Levi impersonator. They all continued to stared at each other until finally the bad Levi impersonator came up to her.   
“Ahh you’re that girl everybody’s been talking about. Hmmph, I don’t see what’s so great about you. You may be good but i’ll always be better. I’m Oluo. Oluo Bozado but you can call me Oluo-sama, “ he said. You’re so old Harper thought, still staring at him. After she thought that his eyes went wide and that is when she realized she had said it out loud.   
“Why you lit” he exclaimed, before he bit his tongue and fell to the ground. Behind him, Harper saw to rest of the people trying hard to contain their laughter, even Levi. Finally it seemed like they could no longer contain their laughter they began laughing, except for Levi who just smirked and continued drinking his tea. Finally after they all finished laughing, the women came up to Harper, extending her hand.  
“Hi, I’m Petra Ral,” she said.   
Placing her hand in Petra’s, Harper said, “I’m Harper Rose.”  
Then the other two men stood up. The pointy haired man is Gunther Schultz while the blonde haired man was Eld Jinn.

After some time of getting to know each other, they heard a knock on the door. Petra opened the door to reveal Erwin and Hanji.   
“Yooo! How’s it going everybody? Getting along,” said Hanji, as she sat down next to Levi, who was calmly, or Harper assumed calmly, drinking his tea.  
“Yes, Commander Hanij,” they all answered.   
“That’s good. I just came to let you all know about the expedition we have coming up in two months,” said Erwin. Two months?!? Harper thought, as she began to silently freak out. Eld, quickly noticing Harper’s distress, calmly said, “It’s alright. You’re going to do great. You couldn’t possible do as bad as Petra and Oluo, who peed their pants at the first sight of a titan.”  
“ELD,” both Petra and Oluo yelled. Eld and Harper just giggled.  
“Alright children, back to the expedition,” said Erwin.

During those two months she met Armin, Eren, Mikasa, Jean(unfortunately), Marco, Sasha, Connie, Krista, Ymir, Reiner, and Bertolt. It was all very strange how they met. It began with her bumping into Armin, literally.   
“Oof,” said Harper, as she landed on her butt. Looking up she saw a boy with beautiful blonde hair and blue eyes. Harper didn’t realized she was staring at him, deep in thought, until she heard him say sheepishly, “Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going.”   
“No.. i’m sorry. I didn’t realized where I was going.” said Harper. Helping Harper up the boy said, “I’m Armin.”   
“I’m Harper,” she said.   
“Do you happen to know where Heichou is? He asked me to do some paperwork for him and I’ve finished but I haven’t seen him around,” asked Armin.   
“Yeah, he’s with Hanji. He walked out of his office, muttering something about ‘shitty glasses’,” replied Harper before quickly adding, “I’ll take you there,” so that she could talk to the blonde haired male some more. She quickly found out that he was childhood friends with a boy named Eren and a girl named Mikasa. She recognized the names, having heard Hanji mention Eren as ‘titan boy’ and then proceeding to compare Harper’s technique to Mikasa’s. She had to admit that she did wish to meet this two people, as Armin described them as great people. Little did she know she would run into them, again, quite literally and more specifically Mikasa. Again turning the corner she crashed into what felt like a wall. But unlike when she crashed into Levi, the other wall, and Armin, she didn’t fall onto her butt, which she was thankful for. Looking up she stared into the black eyes of a girl.   
“Waaah! So pretty,” she muttered, still very close to Mikasa. Mikasa only blushed having never been complimented, other than by Jean but that didn’t mean much.  
“Oh Eren, Mikasa this is Harper. Harper, these are my childhood friends, Eren and Mikasa,” said Armin, introducing the three.  
“Hi, I’m Harper,” she said, with a smile wave and smile.  
Smiling, Eren loudly said, “I’m Eren.”   
Mikasa, the usually emotionally withdrawn and serious girl, gently smiled at Harper and said,”I’m Mikasa.”   
All of them thought about how much Harper reminded them of a small puppy: naive, energetic, and, most of all, cute.   
Later that day at lunch, she meet Jean, Marco, Krista, Ymir, Sasha, and Connie.  
“Hey guys, this is Harper,” said Eren, pushing her forward a bit so that she would be seen by everyone at the table and proceeded to say, “Harper, this is Connie, Sasha, Jean, Marco, Krista, and Ymir.”  
“Hi, I’m Harper,” she said. Everyone resisted the urge to ‘awww’ at the fact that she was really as cute as a small puppy, even Ymir, who everyone thought only had eyes for Krista.  
“Dammit, you titan boy,” exclaimed Jean suddenly slamming his hands on the table,”how is it that you always get the pretty girls?”  
“Shut it, horse face. It’s just because nobody likes you,” replied Eren.   
“Marco likes me. Right, Marco?” asked Jean, turning to look at Marco. Marco just smiled and nodded.   
“Eren, sit down and eat,” said Mikasa, pulling Eren down on the bench. She then turned to Harper and said,” You come sit too Harper.”  
So there they were, enjoying their lunch. They all got along well with Harper. She surprised everyone when she ate almost as much as Sasha and then when she asked Mikasa for her bread like Sasha did back in their trainee days, Mikasa handed it to her with a smile. Then you had Jean trying to flirt but getting blocked by Eren when finally Mikasa would scare both boys for scaring you. Connie made you laugh a lot and then Krista was very nice to you, so was Ymir which also surprised everyone.


	7. Figuring It Out

After lunch Harper decided to visit Lucy during her lunch time. Being on the Special Operations Squad meant Harper had a different schedules than the normal cadets. It made it hard for Harper to meet up with her best friend but nevertheless, they made it work.  
Running, Harper kept yelling,” Lulu! Lulu! Lulu! Lulu!”  
“What is it, my little puppy?” Lucy answered when she finally heard Harper’s yelling. Harper stopped for a second. Puppy? She thought.  
“Puppy,” said Lucy, waving her hand in front of Harper,” what is it?”  
“Ahh yeah, I made a new friend!! Well, more like 9 new friends,” said Harper, suddenly forgetting about being called a puppy.  
Laughing at the girl’s childishness, Lucy said,”That’s great!!”  
Before long, Harper had to get back to training and Lucy had to go to lunch, so the two girls said their goodbyes before they went about on their own thing.   
As Harper was training in her hand-to-hand combat she notices a tall guy standing next to this intimidating guy. Immediately she becomes scared. I'm so small and they're so big. They could squish me like a bug and nobody would notice she thought. Noticing that Harper is staring at them, Reiner and Bertolt walk over to introduce themselves. They're coming over!!!! What should I do?!?! She thought mentally panicking. Finally the really intimidating one extended his hand towards her and said,”I'm Reiner and this,” he said pointing to Bertolt,” is Bertolt.”  
“Oh, umm… I'm Harper,” she replied a bit embarrassed at the fact that she had been caught openly staring at the two. As they helped her train she also started getting along with them. They were almost like two big brother-like figures.   
Once her training was over for the day all Harper wanted to do was flop down on her bed and sleep, but as soon as she got to her barracks she was told that Levi had requested for her to meet him in his office. She groaned and grumbled a bit as she made her way to his “office”, which was really more like a room that his squad used to hang out in. Petra opened the door to his office just as Harper was leaning forward to knock, causing her to almost fall flat on her face.   
“Oh!,” Petra exclaimed catching Harper by the shoulders and preventing her from falling, “I’m sorry, Harper!”  
“It’s fine,” Harper said pulling away as she felt heat creep onto her cheeks, “I should have been paying a bit more attention.”   
Petra started to respond, but was interrupted by Levi coming up beside her in the doorway, “Hey, brat, are you alright?”   
Harper and Petra both looked at him, Petra was shocked to hear such compassion in his voice. “Yeah, I’m fine,” Harper responded, still a little bit embarrassed.   
“Good, be a bit more careful next time,” he directed that towards both of them.  
Harper couldn’t help but notice the slight blush on Petra’s face as Levi stood beside her, and the slight waver in her voice as she said her goodnights and took her leave. Hmmmmm…. I wonder… Her thoughts were interrupted by Levi clearing his throat and glancing at her, motioning to come in and sit down. She obliged and plopped down in one of the most comfortable chairs, and Levi took the seat beside her. An awkward silence settled over both of them as they wondered what they say.  
Finally, Levi broke the silence, “So, how was your first day?”  
“Oh, it was good,” she said, relaxing a bit and beginning to bubble over explaining how everything went and all of the people that she had met, and what they had worked on in training.   
Levi suppressed a smile as he watched her happily going on and on about how wonderful her day had been. He was immensely pleased that she had gotten on so well with the other new members, and he was very proud when she explained how she had used the techniques that he had taught her to show up all the other people, even the instructor.   
“I’m very glad that you had such a pleasant, and eventful first day,” he said, letting a small smile slip as she grinned at him. Harper caught the smile and began to grin even wider. Even she knew that Levi rarely smiled, but whenever he did it was always very warm and kind, and she appreciated that. “I think that tomorrow we will have some training with just our squad. How does that sound?”  
“Amazing! I can’t wait to work with everyone!” Harper said, completely forgetting how tired she was as she bounced in her seat.   
“Alright, it’s getting late. You had better get back to your barracks and get some sleep,” he said standing.   
“Yes, sir” Harper said, joining him in standing. They stood awkwardly, unsure of what to do, before Harper had finally had enough and walked towards the door.   
She almost left without saying another word, but Levi caught her just as she was walking out the door, “Goodnight, Harper.”  
“Oh, umm. Goodnight!” she said with an awkward wave as she closed the door. Once she was out in the hallway she breathed a sigh of relief. Man, that was soo awkward! I wonder what’s up with him? As she walked back to her barracks and prepared herself to sleep, Levi sat in the same place contemplating what had happened. He didn’t know what had made him freeze up like that, normally he always knew what to say. But it was a whole new playing field with that girl; he was beginning to feel responsible for her, even more so than his other squad members, and he also felt the need to protect her. Maybe it was that childlike attitude that made him feel the need to worry and try to “father” her. Whatever it was, he needed to figure it out before he ruined whatever sort of relationship they had started.


	8. First Day on the Job

During the two months, Harper was super busy: training, trying to keep her friendships with everyone, and chores. The chores weren’t hers but Violet and Amelia’s. Harper was just too nice to say no and they had even convinced her that if she did their chores, they would be friends. Of course when she told Lucy this, Lucy was immediately concerned, saying,” Those aren’t friends. They’re just using you.” Harper immediately got angry,” No they aren’t!! You’re just mad that I have more friends than you,” she yelled before running away. Lucy was shocked for a second but was concerned for the girl.For days, Lucy tried to talk to the girl but Harper either ignored her or ran away.  
The day before the expedition, Harper was still angry. Why can’t she be happy that I’m making friends? She thought. Finally as she rounded a corner she stopped.   
“She’s so dumb. I’m surprised she’s been doing our chores for this long,” she heard someone say.  
“She actually thinks we’re friends. She’s so fake, always being nice and cute like that. I bet she’s sleeping with all the guys and that’s why they’re so nice to her,” she heard another voice, before both voices started laughing. She looked around the corner and saw Amelia and Violet.   
“She must be really good if even Captain Levi is being good. Such a slut,” she saw Amelia say. By then Harper had heard enough and she was silently crying. I’m so dumb, of course Lucy was right she thought. Silently she began walking back towards her barrack.   
She was so close to her bed where she would throw herself and wallow in self pity for a while. That is until she runs right into Levi.  
Saluting, she says, “Captain,” silently cursing herself when her voice cracks. Harper kept looking down to avoid eye contact but Levi had already seen the tears falling from her eyes.  
“What’s wrong,” he asked. Harper just shook her head, and wrapped her arms around Levi. Levi just stood there, shocked. Finally she pulled away and said a small bye before taking off. 

Levi tried to do his paperwork but Harper kept creeping into his mind. Why was she crying? He asked until finally he had enough.   
Walking out, he pointed at kid walking by,”You!” he yelled. The boy was scared, especially since humanity’s strongest soldier was talking to him and he looked angry. “M-m..e,” asked the boy, pointing to himself.   
“Yes, you. Go find me Lucy Jones. Quickly, “ said Levi before walking back into his office. Luckily, the kid knew Lucy since he graduated with her and quickly went off to find her.

Almost 10 minutes later, Levi heard a knock on his door. Assuming it was Lucy he said,”Come in.”   
“You wanted to see me sir,” said Lucy as she sat down.   
“Yeah. Let me get straight to the point. What’s wrong with Harper?”

To say he was mad was an understatement, he was beyond pissed. After Lucy let Levi know about Amelia and Violet’s ‘friendship’ with Harper, he immediately left his office to find the two girls and when he did, he let all of hell loose. Amelia and Violet never bothered Harper again.

The next morning, it was finally time for the expedition and Harper was super excited to go outside the walls, and of course kill some titans. We’re going to do great she thought, but she couldn’t help but feel that something was going to go wrong. She dismissed the thought because maybe she just thought that she was nervous, especially since this was her first time.   
Finally it was time to go.

Outside the walls, the Survey Corps split up into teams. Of course, Harper went with the Special Operations Squad but this time Harper noticed that to her right was Eren. In the front was Levi, to her left was Petra, and behind her was Eld, Gunther, and Oluo.  
“Hey brat, face forward,” she heard Levi at her.   
“Ah.. yes captain,” she said.

After about an hour, a black flare was fired. Harper didn’t think much of it. She just thought we would change course to avoid the titan but then a purple flare was fired. Everyone was worried. A purple hadn’t been used for some time. Finally they saw a yellow flare followed by a blue flare.   
“Team. You guys keep going towards the rest. I'm going to find Erwin. Eld you're in charge,” they heard Levi say.   
Harper looked around. What's happening? She thought. Before Levi could take off, Petra yelled,”Levi be careful.” Nodding he just said,” I will.” before taking off. 

When the Special Operations Squad arrived to the meeting place, they saw Erwin with Levi and all the other Survey Corps members. Oluo, Eren, Petra, Eld, and Gunther rode in first with Harper behind them, when suddenly they stopped. Harper looked around. Everybody was just staring at something in the middle but Harper was too short to see what it was.   
“Guys what's wrong,” she asked. Finally she got off her horse and began walking closer towards the middle but stopped when she could finally see what was there.


	9. Eat

Everybody dreaded what was about to happen. It was almost like someone had kicked a cute puppy in the face.  
“Lulu?” Harper said. Harper couldn't believe it.   
“It can't be you. I still haven't said sorry. I'm sorry if you're mad at me. I deserve it, but don't leave. Don't leave me. Not you too,” said Harper crying. Finally she leaned down and hugged what was left of Lucy, making everyone else feel worse than they already did.   
“Levi, we had a group of abnormal Titans come at us. We were able to kill them but not before one of them bit Lucy,” Hanji told Levi.   
“Dammit, those filthy beasts,” he said. 

“Harper, come on. We have to get Lucy on the wagon and take her home,” said Erwin, trying to remove the girl from Lucy. But Harper didn't want to let go until finally Levi grabbed Harper by the arm and ripped her away from Lucy making Harper cry even harder.   
“Come on. Get yourself together,” he said. 

 

3 nights and 2 days was how long Harper stayed in her barrack. Armin, Eren, Mikasa, and all the others tried to get her to come out and eat something or at least give them a sign that she was alright but nothing.   
“Heichou, Harper still isn’t coming out,” Armin told Levi the 3rd day during lunch. Sighing, Levi put down his coffee and said to Armin, “Get me soup and put it down where i’m sitting.” before walking out. Armin looked confused as to what the short captain was going to do but still Armin did as he was told. Hanji and Erwin just gave each other a look, concerned for the girl. Levi had been pretty harsh to her when he basically ripped her away from her only comfort source. Finally after a few minutes they heard someone yelling, “Put me down!!” and immediately the door open to reveal Levi carrying Harper like a sack of potatoes. Levi then proceeded to walk to the table where he was sitting just a few minutes ago and gently set Harper down before sitting down next to her. He pushed the soup towards her and said, “Eat.” Harper just turned her head to the side, having no intention of eating the soup. Finally, Levi had had enough of the girl’s attitude. He grabbed Harper’s chin and turned her head, before shoving a spoonful of soup into her mouth. “Brat, you gotta eat. Lucy wouldn’t want you to starve yourself, “ he whispered to her. At the mention of Lucy, Harper stared at Levi before she began to cry. Levi just pulled the sad girl into a hug. Everyone at the table was so surprised. Hanji, Erwin, Petra, Oluo, Eld, Gunther, and even everyone else sitting close by stared with their mouths wide open as the usually emotionless Levi hugged the crying girl until he glared at all of them.   
After Harper finished crying, she began to eat the soup, with tears still streaming silently down her cheeks, and Levi just continued to drinking his tea. 

That night Levi was reading in his bed when he heard a knock on the door. “Who the fuck knocks this late at night,” he angrily whispered. Opening the door, he looked down to see Harper standing there in her pajamas holding a blanket.  
“Heichou Vi, I had a nightmare and,” she quietly said,” can I sleep with you?”  
It was quiet so Levi was able to hear her. He was taken aback by the nickname and her request. Vi Heichou? Sleep with me? He thought. Finally he stepped aside and opened the door wider for her.  
“Just for tonight,” he said. Harper only nodded and quickly ran in and jumped in his bed. Levi just slid in next to her, still reading his book. After a few minutes he heard soft snoring and look down to see Harper asleep, snuggled into him. He couldn’t help but stare at the girl who in a short amount of time managed to soften his stone heart. 

The next morning she woke up with her hair all over her face. She almost began crying again at the fact that Lucy wasn’t there anymore to help her. She would have to face everything alone again. She sat up and tried to braid her hair. She struggled until finally she grew annoyed and left it as it was.   
“Here,” she heard behind her. She almost jumped. She thought Levi had been asleep. She felt Levi run his fingers through her hair before finally braiding it. Having someone play with her hair almost made her want to go back to sleep but soon Levi finished and gently shoved her to get dressed.   
“Come on, let’s eat and then train,” he said.


	10. Cupid

-1 month later-  
Harper had begun to stick close to Levi, almost like a baby duck. She was still a bit sad about Lucy so everyone avoided any conversation about her. She had begun calling Levi, Vi, causing Hanji to make fun of him.  
“Harper, go give these papers to Erwin,” said Levi one day.  
“Yes Vi heichou,” replied Harper happily as she took the papers and walked out of his office.  
“Vi heichou,” snickered Hanji.   
“Shut up shitty glasses. Don’t call me that,” he said.  
After a while Hanji began to talk again.  
“You know, Petra’s been dropping hints for you. You’re going to die alone and unhappy if you don’t get a girlfriend soon,” said Hanji.  
Sighing Levi put down his pen. Harper, who had been listening outside the whole time, finally walked in.  
“Vi heichou, Erwin asked me to give you these papers,” she said.  
“Dammit Erwin. Always giving me so much damn paperwork,” he muttered, taking the stack of paper she was holding.   
“Umm… I’ve got to go,” she said quickly then ran out of Levi’s office. Both Hanji and Levi just stared at the door before returning to what they were doing.

 

“Vi heichou needs to be happy so I have to get him and Petra together,” she said as she ran to the dining room. Suddenly she stopped and said,” but how?”   
Walking into the dining room, she spotted Eren, Mikasa, Armin, Marco, Jean, and Petra.   
Smiling she ran out of the dining room and back to Levi’s office.   
“Vi heichou!!! Come on let’s go eat lunch. I know you haven't eaten anything,” she exclaimed.   
Levi put his pen down and said,”fine.”  
That was easy thought Harper. 

At the dining room, Levi and Harper got food and went to sit.   
“Vi heichou lets sit by Petra,” said Harper, dragging Levi over to Petra. Levi just followed without a complaint. Once they sat down, Petra blushed as she stared at Levi and Harper saw this as an opportunity to get the two closer.   
“I'm going to go sit by Eren and Mikasa. Bye Vi heichou. Bye Petra,” she said. 

As Harper ate with the Mikasa and the others, she kept looking behind her towards Levi and Petra’s table. She was happy to see that Levi was talking and that Petra occasionally blushed. Alright my plan worked she thought.   
-7 months later-   
Harper tried really hard to get Levi and Petra together but it wasn’t working. She almost started giving up but then she thought about how Levi needs some happiness in his life. So sometimes she would have other Survey Corps members try to help her out. But the Survey Corps also had an expedition coming up soon so Harper didn’t have much time to follow through with operation get Levi and Petra together.  
Finally the morning of the expedition Harper was a mess. She didn’t really want to leave her room, convinced that someone was going to die like Lucy. It took a few threats and much encouragement from Levi so that she would finally come out of her room.   
When they went outside the wall, the Special Operations squad put Harper in the middle of their little semi-circle. That way she would know that she is safe.  
It had been hours since they left the safety of the wall but so far no titans.   
“Oh man, no titans that I can kill,” she heard Oluo complain. But just as Oluo said that, they saw a giant hairy titan heading towards them. They all stopped shocked, even Levi. What’s happening? What is that? Said Harper. Quickly the titan reached down and wrapped its hairy hand around Petra .“Levi!! Help,” yelled Petra. Levi finally snapped out of his shocked state. He was about to switch to 3DMG so that he could get Petra. But how? All around is just flat land he thought. Out of the corner of his eye saw someone whiz by.

 

Harper. Harper had attached the hooks to the titan’s arm. She then proceeded to cut the titan’s hand, the one that was holding Petra. She dropped to the ground with Petra before turning around to finish the titan. She then did something risky. She attached the hooks to the titan’s shoulders and then cut his neck. Fortunately everything went well, but still Levi was livid.  
Harper had landed on the ground safety and was turning around when she felt a sharp pain on her cheek and she found herself on the ground.  
“Are you crazy,” she heard Levi yell at her, clearly angry.  
“V-vi Heichou,” she quietly said still holding her cheek.   
“That was the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen you do. Were you trying to get yourself killed dumbass?” He yelled. Harper just sat on the ground, staring at him in horror.   
“I wasn’t going to let Petra get killed,” She said. As soon as she said that, Levi glared at her.  
“So you tried to get both of you killed,” he yelled again. Soon Harper was crying and Levi was still yelling at her about how dumb that was, and how dumb she was for doing that.  
“Levi, stop. Let’s just go. They’ve shot the blue flare,” said Eld.  
Levi finally got on his horse and began to ride away with Eld, Gunther, and Oluo. Petra and Eren stayed behind to make sure Harper was okay.Slowly Petra embraced the crying girl.  
“Thanks for saving me, Harper. I was so scared,” said Petra gently smiling at the still crying girl.  
“You know, Harper, no matter what the captain says, that was really cool and brave,” said Eren. Petra nodded agreeing with the boy.


	11. Aren't You Proud?

When all of the Survey Corps got together, Harper’s cheek still hurt, and she thought there was going to be a bruise tomorrow. Of course Erwin and Hanji, along with Mikasa, Jean, Armin, Marco, Bertolt, Reiner, Krista, Ymir, Sasha, and Connie, wanted to know why the girl was crying but she just said it was nothing. Secretly Eren told everyone. They could see why Levi got mad but they still felt bad for the poor girl. She looked up to Levi like a dad figure and it probably broke her heart that he was mad instead of proud of her actions. 

Back at the barracks, Harper again stayed in her room but this time she did talk to her friends to let them know that she was fine and just needed some time alone.  
“Shorty, you were so mean to that little puppy. You know, she was only trying to save Petra so you would be happy.” said Hanji.  
“Shut it, shitty glasses. You know as well as I do that it was stupid what she did.” Levi replied.  
“Yes it was Levi. But, again, like Hanji said she was doing it for you. She seems to think that you would be happy if you got together with Petra, so if Petra died you would be sad,” said Erwin.  
“Why would she think that,” he asked.  
“Shorty, remember that day I told you that Petra was dropping hints, and that you would die alone and unhappy. Well she was standing outside the door, I’m surprised you didn’t noticed her,” said Hanji.   
“Aww, damn. I probably hurt her feelings,” said Levi putting his face in his hands.  
“Big time,” replied Hanji. Levi stood up and walked out of his office.  
“You know, he’s turning into a real big softy, but it’s kinda cute,” said Hanji to Erwin.

“It’s Captain Levi, can I come in?” asked Levi, as he knocked on Harper’s door. Harper, still angry at him, didn’t answer and instead pretended as if she wasn’t there. But she had forgotten to lock the door and Levi just walked in.   
“I didn’t say you could come in,” she muttered as he sat down on her bed.  
“I’m sorry, puppy. I didn’t mean to yell at you. There’s no excuse. It’s just that you worried me when you suddenly began attacking that titan,” he said, pulling her into a hug.  
“Vi heichou, it’s okay. You’re just really scary when you yell at people. Especially when they don’t clean things up to your standards,” she said.   
“Also, what is this I hear about you trying to get me together with Petra,” Levi asked. Harper blushed,” Well Hanji said you would die alone and unhappy. And I wanted you to be happy. And you always seem happy around Petra so…”   
Levi almost smiled. It was so adorable how she thought of others before herself.

The very next few days continued normally: train, eat, and sleep. One day though she was sitting in Levi’s office, watching him do his paperwork because she had nothing to do, when Hanji barges in, scaring both Levi and Harper.  
“Shorty, Mike and Nanaba are back,” she yelled.  
“Quiet shitty glasses,” he replies as he stands up and begins walking towards the door. Harper also stands up and begins to follow Hanji and Levi. Who’s Mike and Nanaba? She thought. Finally Levi and Hanji stopped in front of a tall, bearded man and a blonde haired woman, who were talking to Erwin.   
“Glad to have you back Mike and Nanaba,” said Erwin. The man just nodded, but the woman replied, “Glad to be back sir,”   
Harper assumed Nanaba was the woman and Mike was the tall man. Erwin took noticed of Harper and said,” Mike, Nanaba, this is Harper. A new addition to the Special Operations Squad.”  
Shyly, she said,”Hi, I’m Harper. She then extended her hand for them to shake. The man took her hand and said, “Mike,” before he leaned and began to sniff her. Harper just looked at Levi with pleading eyes.   
“He does that with everyone,” he said. After Harper was finished being sniffed, she looked at the woman next to Mike.   
“I’m Nanaba,” she said.

After introductions, Levi shooed Harper away claiming they had very important business to talk about and that only squad leaders could attend.

“So what did the King say” asked Erwin, as soon as they were in the safety of his office.  
“He thinks that with the reports we gave him and the inspection they had some of their workers do, we could probably disband in about a year,” said Nanaba.  
“Waah. Who would’ve thought we would live to see the day that humanity finally beats the titans,” said Hanji.  
“Good, they were nasty, filthy beasts anyways,” said Levi. Mike just nodded in agreement. While they were sad that the Survey Corps would disband, humanity had done it. They had finally beat the titans.


	12. Humanity's Done It

-4 months later-  
Erwin and Hanji had surprised everyone when they announced that they were going to get married but nevertheless everyone congratulated them. Harper was even more excited when Hanji asked her to be the maid of honor. Hanji had Krista, Sasha, Mikasa, and Ymir to be her bridesmaids. Erwin asked Levi to be his best man and Eren, Jean, Marco, and Connie to be his groomsmen.   
The day of the wedding, everyone was nervous, except for Hanji who already knew she was going to do great. During the ceremony, Hanji kept getting bored so she, at one point, asked the minister to hurry up with his ‘boring speech’. Everyone silently thanked her. Finally the minister ended his speech with “You may kiss the bride.” and everybody started celebrating.  
At the party it was super crazy. There were people dancing all over the place. Harper noticed Levi standing all alone by the wall so she walked over.   
“Vi heichou, would you dance with me?” she asked.  
“Dance with shitty glasses or someone else,” he said.  
Pouting she said, “I’ve already danced with Hanji, besides she’s dancing with Erwin. And everyone else is already dancing with someone.”  
“Tch” was all he said before he took her hand and lead her towards the dancefloor.  
Harper and Levi had danced a few songs before they switched partners. Levi with Petra and Armin with Harper.  
As they danced Petra asked, “Levi can I talk to you outside for a moment?”  
He looked at her for a moment before he said,”Yeah.”

Out of the corner of her eye, Harper saw Petra and Levi walk out together.   
“I have to go Armin, if you don’t mind,” she said.  
With a knowing smile, Armin said,”Alright.” With that Harper began to walk in the direction that Petra and Levi went. She spotted Levi and Petra walking outside and she followed, but stopped when they stopped. Finally from behind the tree she was hiding in, she listened to their conversation.  
“I don’t know how to say this but… I...I love you Levi,” said Petra. Levi just stared at her until finally Petra pulled him into a hug. Levi then hugged her back. Finally thought Harper, but she couldn’t help but feel sad. Leaving she began to head back but instead of going back to the party she headed in a different direction. She stopped at the horse stable and walked in. Wow! Jean did a good job in cleaning she thought as she looked around. She went towards her horse who just neighed at her. “Oh horsey, I’m going to be alone again,” she said to the horse. The horse just neighed in return. I’ve gone crazy. I’m talking to a horse she thought.

Finally after a while, Levi gently pushed Petra away.   
“I’m sorry but I don’t feel the same,” he said, walking away. 

 

Petra was heartbroken. She had loved him for so long and when she finally had the courage to confess he rejected her. Beginning to cry she just sits on the ground. She hears the sound of the door being opened, thinking it’s Levi she turns around only to find Oluo there. Wiping away some of her tears she says,”What do you want?”   
“They just cut the cake so I thought you would want some cake. I saw you leave with Captain Levi but you didn't return when he did,” Oluo replied. Petra just stared at Oluo before she accepted the cake.   
“Why are you crying?” he asked. Sighing, Petra said,” I confessed and got rejected.”  
“WHAT?!?” Oluo yelled. He then stood up and began walking towards the door.   
“ where are you going?” Asked Petra.   
“To teach Captain a lesson. He should know better than to make a pretty girl cry,” he responded. Laughing, Petra yelled,”Get back here. You know he'd beat you. Come eat this cake with me instead.”

Levi was looking around for Harper but she still couldn't find the girl. Where are you brat? He thought. He spotted Armin and walked over to him since he was the last one he saw you with.   
“Armin, where's Harper?” he asked.   
“Aah… Sir. She went after you,” he replied. “Damn brat,” he said before walking away. He walked out and began to look around outside. Where could that brat be? Ahh! The stables. She likes talking to that horse of hers. He thought.   
He was correct in assuming she was in the stables. There she was petting her horse. Noticing Levi, she smiled at him.   
“Brat, why did you disappear?” He asked sitting down by her. Wow! Horse face actually did a good job cleaning he thought.   
“I just needed some fresh air,” she said, still petting her horse.   
“What's wrong?” He asked.   
“Nothing sir,” she replied.   
“Bullshit. You don't call me sir or captain unless something’s wrong,” he said standing up.  
“I do not. I call you captain or sir because that's what you are,” she replied taking a step towards him.   
“No. You either call me Vi or Vi heichou,” he said, taking a step towards her. They were face to face and almost glaring at each other when finally Harper’s bottom lip began to quiver. She then threw her arms around Levi and buried her face in his chest before she began to cry.   
“Why are you crying?” he asked but Harper just shook her head refusing to answer him. Finally Levi had enough of not getting any answer. He grabbed her chin and made her look at him.   
“Tell me why you're crying puppy,” he said looking into her puffy red eyes.   
It took her awhile but Harper finally said,”You're going to leave me. Like mom, dad, and Lucy, you're going to leave.” Levi just stared at her making her uncomfortable.   
“Why do you think I'm going to leave you,” he asked.   
“You have Petra now. And I know what happens next. Just like Erwin and Hanji you're going to get married,” she said almost beginning to cry again.   
“Brat, were you listening to our conversation again,” he said, sighing. Having realized she had been caught, Harper quickly tried to deny the accusation but Levi already knew the truth.   
“Stop changing the subject,” she yelled frustrated.   
“Listen puppy, I'm not going to leave you for Petra because Petra likes Oluo even if she doesn't realize it now. That's why I said no. And other than the fact that I'm just not looking to get married any time soon,” he said, pulling her into a hug. That seemed to have made her relax. Slowly he began to say,” Puppy, I've put a lot of thought into this, and I’ve realized that we only have each other. You're the only family I have, and i bet you would say the same about me. I’m not going to bother trying to hide it, I think everyone knows that the survey corps will be disbanded before long. It just isn’t necessary anymore. What are we going to do after that? I would live alone, and you would be shipped off to an orphanage or something.”   
Harper glanced at him, she could feel tears welling up in her eyes at the prospect of leaving him and all of her friends. She couldn't go back to another orphanage, and she couldn't bear losing him too. Vi is right, he really is the only family I have…   
After a moment, Levi began speaking again, “Now, I thought of something, and if you don't agree with it just say so and we'll pretend I never brought it up… What if I adopted you? I mean, things could stay the same as they are, even after the corps is disbanded. You wouldn't have to be sent away somewhere, and I…. I wouldn't be lonely again.”


End file.
